


The tale of a knight

by mcbaal



Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-16
Updated: 2018-10-16
Packaged: 2019-08-03 02:22:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16317323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcbaal/pseuds/mcbaal
Summary: Powerful, yet undisciplined, the young Padawan Baliyan has the potential of becoming one of the galactic republics greatest heroes. But even though his talent for lightsabre combat is unmatched within the Jedi order, so is his willingness to challenge authority and tingle with things he is not supposed to. While Baliyan struggles with the task of becoming a knight of the republic and his growing feelings for another young Padawan, the Sith emperor continues with his own devious plans.





	The tale of a knight

**Author's Note:**

> I restarted playing Star wars - The old republic and even though Bioware still didn't give me back Kira Carsen, the informations for the upcoming content made me restart the game with a Jedi knight. I always need a backstory for my characters to get immersed and decided to share the story as it spins around in my head while i play it. While i realy like Lana Beniko and end up with her with almost all of my characters, Kira Carssen is just irresistible and almost too perfect. So yeah, sorry Lana, but you get dumped as soon as Bioware finaly delivers that special and meaningfull return of Kira and Scourge...Until then expect tough fights, cheesy talk, dirty talk and smut.
> 
> I just watched Kingdom of heavens and after about 3 days without finding a name for my knight i simply named him Baliyan (curse you whoever took Balian...) But i guess Baliyan sounds somewhat like a futuristic version of a medieval name, so for me it works out fine. Also i am a great fan of Game of thrones and realy enjoy the R+L=J story (told ya so Dayne theorists) despite i realy hated the wigg...wasn't Rhaegar described as handsome? Whatever...So i shamelessly "borrowed" some of the Tower of Joy elements and Star Warsified them until i was satisfied.  
> Basically my knight is a mixture of Jon Snow, Balian of Ibelin, Anakin Skywalker and whoever i see fit in the future ;-)
> 
> English is not my native language, so please forgive me any errors i make. I am doing my best to...pimp up...the already great Jedi knight story Bioware gave us. Feedback is appreceated and welcome as it motivates for further chapters. Enough of the words, get the Star Wars theme going and tell the kids in the row behind you to shut the fuck up.

_**A long time ago in a galaxy far far away…** _

__

_**After decades of bloody warfare, the Sith empire and the galactic republic fought each other almost to a stalemate. Despite bloody battles, the Sith emperor's armies were unable to achieve a decisive victory over the republics defenders.** _

_**Recently the dark lord of the Sith was plagued by visions of imminent defeat and the loss of all he cared about. Further investigations revealed the source of his supposed defeat to be Errin Deena, a young Padawan of the Jedi order, strong in the force and considered one of the greatest upcoming Jedi in a decimated order.** _

_**To prevent his ultimate end, the emperor sent out one of his most trusted Sith warriors and military commanders to find and destroy the Padawan before she could become a Jedi knight. Lord Damien hunted the unknowing Padawan across the galaxy and ultimately found her on a small moon, separated from her allies and on a mission to prove herself.** _

_**Yet apparently the force seemed to have other plans. Instead of killing the young women as ordered by his emperor, Lord Damien fell for the Padawan. In love and afraid of their ancient orders, both decided to go into exile, hiding from Sith and Jedi alike, going as far as to fake their own deaths.** _

_**But the emperors reach is far and his eyes are everywhere. After just a year in exile his servants tracked down the pair on the ancient world of Ossus. With their ship recently destroyed and unable to leave the planet, the emperor sent his wrath to support the imperial assassins already on Ossus and kill the Padawan as well as the traitor.** _

_**Cornered and with no place to run, Damien prepares his last stand to protect his wife and unborn son…** _

 

 

 ****************************************Camera turns to a forsaken and devastated desert planet************************************************

 

 

With a heavy heart, Damien looked around. But all he could see was red sand, rocks and the ancient ruins of long destroyed Jedi temples. Soon this place would become his last stand, Errin was well hidden inside the temple behind him. Due to her pregnancy she was in no condition to fight. She could barely move, and their child could be born at any moment.

Before they were forced to leave their shot down ship behind, she managed to send a message to a close friend inside the Jedi order, one she claimed would understand why she decided to leave. But it was doubtful that help would arrive in time if at all. Until then, he would have to defend this entrance. No retreat, no surrender, no way out. He didn’t know why the emperor wanted to see Errin dead so badly, but he didn’t care. He’d rather die than allow such a thing to happen. Even if it meant to ask the Jedi for help and get separated due to the Jedi’s fear of attachments. Yet, he didn’t regret his decision. It may have been only a year, but during this year he felt more alive than ever before. Yes, it was worth it.

 

A movement at the end of the canyon leading to his position caught his eye. A small group of five…no six individuals in black robes slowly approached the temple. So they finally found them and no Jedi rescue team was in sight.

Damien sighed heavily and watched at his lightsaber.  So many battles, years of bloodshed in the name of the emperor, but in the end his last battle would be against his own. He always considered the force to have a bitter sense of irony. A suppressed scream from inside the temple remembered him of what Errin was going through right now. The child was coming and she had no one by her side, not even a droid. The thought pained him and fueled his anger. _“Good…”_ he thought and started to build up his hatred for his enemies.

They were getting close now and should come around the last corner to the temples entrance at any moment. Then all that was left between them and the love of his life would be some broken steps up to the entrance and him. _“So be it…”_

 

And then there they were, six Sith assassins with the emperors personal mark on their armor. The chosen warriors of the dark lord being here meant that the emperor’s wrath wasn’t far behind. He met the man once and it was no pleasant encounter. He rarely spoke, yet he was frightening. Rumors said that he was at least 300 years old and immortal just like the emperor himself.

True or not, the dark council and any Sith with at least the slightest bit of intellect most likely feared him for good reason.

 

 _“How do you want to die traitor? Standing or on your knees?”_ one of the assassins growled through his mask. _“Neither of it I guess”_ Damien answered. _“Then you shouldn’t have betrayed our master. Where is the Jedi?”_ one of his companions spit out. _“There are no Jedi on this planet, not anymore.”_

_“Liar! We can feel her presence, she is close.”_

_“I really have no idea what you are talking about.”_ Buy some time, Damien thought. Maybe by some miracle Errin's Jedi friends are on their way. _“I am the only one out here. You failed. The emperor’s wrath will be quite disappointed when he learns that you called him out here for no reason.”_

 

Another scream from inside the temple made him shiver. _“I suppose that was some dead Jedi’s ghost then, wasn’t it?”_ The assassins fired up their lightsabers, the fight was about to begin. _“You should have given us the girl and surrendered, would have been much easier. Why sacrifice your life for a Jedi?”_ Damien activated his lightsaber.

 _“You wouldn’t understand. And I am not here to make it easier for you little Sith wannabes.”_ Make them angry, make them lose their formation. _“You are just a bunch of mere acolytes, trying to make a name for yourself. The wrath must be desperate for dead meat...”_ Finally one of the assassins lost it an launched a vicious attack. But him attacking now meant that he was on his own. Damien stood still while the attacker jumped towards him and only slightly stepped backwards just before he reached him. Simultaneously he thrusted his lightsaber forward and made a quick, curved move with his blade. The decapitated body of the assassin dropped right in front of him. One down, five to go.

 

 _“Pathetic, how did you even manage do survive the academy?”_ he asked provocative, no one answered. Two of the assassins started to flank him, but with a slight adjustment of his stance and lightsaber positioning, Damien negated their advantage. Now the other three started closing in, ready to strike. Almost surrounded, Damien decided to take the initiative. He launched a series of Makashi attacks to regain some space and switched to Diem So before his opponents could adapt. A second assassin ended dead in the sand when Damien rammed his lightsaber upwards, straight through his jaw.

One of the remaining four assassins managed to slip past him and almost got into the temple, so Damien was forced out of his defensive position to chase him. The others followed closely. Inside the temple's hallway it was dark, the light from outside the ruin didn’t make it far inside. Damien force jumped forward, catching up to the assassin and impaling him with a fast thrust of his lightsaber through his back. Three down, three to go. But now they were inside the temple and dangerously close to his loved one during child birth. Something he could not allow to happen, he needed to get the remaining assassins out of the temple.

With a continuous series of enraged strikes Damien drove all of his attackers back towards the entrance. Unfortunately this vicious assault was tiring as well and his opponents knew that. Now back in the sunlight they could see an increasing amount of sweat drops on his face. Instead of fighting him all at once, they turned to a rotation of two fighting and one resting in the background. About every minute they changed roles, giving each other a small break, while Damien had to stay in the fight. He could feel his arms getting heavy, the burning sun above their heads being no relieve at all.

 

 _“You are defeated you damn fool!”_ one of the assassins growled. Damien didn’t answer, there was no need to waste breath. Instead he once more forced himself into another furious attack. One of his strokes pierced through his enemies defenses, wounded his shoulder and made the assassin drop his weapon. But before he could finish him off, his formerly resting companion stepped in and stopped Damien's blade. Before he could regain his stance, the third assassin thrusted his blade forward, aiming for Damien’s leg. He tried to jump, but it was already too late and the weapon found its target. All he could do was force push the assassin backwards to prevent him from cutting off his limb. Still, he was heavily wounded, barely able to keep standing.

 

Growling in pain, Damien used the force to jump towards the entrance, landing on his intact leg. The best he could do now was to play for time, so he switched his style to Soresu. Close space, Soresu and the hope of his lover’s message reaching her Jedi friend was all he had left. He had no more chance of winning this fight and even if he did, the emperor’s wrath would finish him off.  It would have been hell of a fight in a rested and unwounded state, but now, tired and with just one intact leg, he’d have no chance in hell of stopping the emperor’s personal executioner.

The two still unwounded assassins followed him inside the temple while the third one used a quick Kolto injection to get going again. His companions didn’t give Damien a chance to do the same, instead they pressed the attack. Damien now solely focused on staying in the fight. This wasn’t about winning anymore, not even about survival. It was just about keeping the hallway blocked for as long as possible.

Attack followed attack, parade followed parade, and every once in a while the assassins tried to get past him. Tired and wounded, starting to feel more and more new wounds inflicted to his body, Damien’s thoughts started to wander off, back to better times. He remembered when he first looked Errin into her green eyes, when he decided not to kill her, when they choose to run away together, when they made love for the first time, when she told him that she was pregnant…This thought got him back into reality, his senses once more on high alert. The mind trailing off during a life or death fight was an alarming sign of imminent defeat. It was the will to fight leaving the body, one of the last steps before giving up.

 

Then the wounded assassin ran into the hallway and yelled at his companions. “A republic ship just landed close to the canyon. It appears to be a Jedi shuttle!” With this message, Damien felt like getting a Stim of pure adrenaline. He could feel his heart pumping with new power, a spike of strength rushing into his arms and legs.

With a warrior’s yell he forced himself into one last attack, catching his opponents completely off guard. One got stabbed in the chest, another force choked to death before he could get his mental defenses up. The wounded assassin next to the entrance looked at Damien in surprise, then turned around and tried to flee. A thrown lightsaber impaled him on the spot, killing the assassin before his body even reached the ground.

A prolonged scream of pain from deeper inside the temple echoed through the hallway and made Damien shiver. What was going on down there? Was Errin all right? Before he could turn around and look after her he felt a burning pain, starting within his chest and quickly reaching throughout his entire body. He looked downwards and saw the tip of a red lightsaber reaching out of his chest before it got pulled back. The assassin he stabbed merely moments before himself somehow managed to get back on his knees, ready to finish Damien off and complete his mission before the Jedi reinforcements could reach the temple.

Damien could feel his remaining strength quickly leaving his body, his lightsaber dropped to the stony floor. He couldn’t breathe anymore, coldness started to embrace him. In a last ditch effort, he thrust himself forward, pushed away the assassin's lightsaber and reached with his hands around the assassins neck. He sensed the fear growing in his enemy until the it’s body went limb. Damien tried to whisper the name of his love one last time, but all of his strength was gone. Then there was only darkness.

 

 

Jedi knight Satele Shan moved towards the temple's entrance. There were the dead bodies of three Sith on the ground and the red sand was even more red from all the blood it soaked. Ancient statues and rocks were shattered by the impact of lightsabers and force attacks, but no sign of life anywhere. Satele activated her own lightsaber before she entered the temple and immediately noticed three more corpses on the floor.

A fourth corpse was hidden under the body of a young looking man, apparently he strangled his opponent to death before he died himself. His armor was shattered, one of his legs almost cut off and the rest of his body showed signs of at least a dozen propably lethal wounds and broken bones. All signs indicated that this was the site of a fight as vicious and desperate as it could get.

 

As she proceeded to search the temple for survivors, she felt a disturbance in the force. There was something or someone powerful inside this ruin. It felt familiar, yet foreign. After a while the Jedi entered a room with a single improvised bed. An on this bed, resting in a puddle of blood, she found her old friend, a friend she thought she lost about a year ago. Errin was deadly pale and motionless, but in her arms she carried a small bundle.

Satele rushed towards the bed to look after her friend, only to realize that she was too late. Errin was already dead. When she reached for her face to close Errin’s eyes, she noticed that there was no pain inside them, only love. Whatever she saw during her last moments didn’t scare or hurt her. Satele closed her friend’s eyes and checked in confusion what she was holding in her arms. She took the little bundle out of her arms and unfolded the clothes hiding what was inside. To Satele’s surprise it turned out to be a sleeping baby. It was bloodied from birth, but healthy and alive. The moment the baby woke up from her touch, she could feel a wave of rough, unchained power flowing over her. The familiar, yet strange presence she noticed before. The force was strong in this baby, very strong, even stronger than she ever realized within a member of her order.

 

While she looked into the warm, steel blue eyes of the infant, Satele noticed another force entity reaching out for the baby. She didn’t just feel anger and hatred, she could feel darkness beyond imagination, a lust for power that could never be satisfied. _“Vitiate!”_

Quickly Satele pressed the baby towards her chest as close as possible, focusing on the living force to shield the infant from the psychic attack. The temple ruins started to shake and for a moment she thought that she heard a voice whispering in ancient sith language. Then the attack was over and the ruins stopped shaking.

 

A familiar voice from the hallway called her name. _“I'm in here Orgus”_ Another Jedi entered the chamber. _“Are we too late to save your friend?"_ The newcomer asked. Satele sighed. _“Unfortunately we are. Errin is one with the force now. But I am afraid we have another problem.”_

When the other Jedi noticed the infant in Satele’s arms he frowned. _“She had a child?”_

 _“It appears so. And I am afraid he already got the attention of the enemy”_ She stroked the infants cheek and chuckled as the little one started smiling at her. _“We need to protect him, no one must ever know the truth.”_

 _“We will hide him, I am sure the SIS is willing to help with some fake ID for an infant.”_ Satele once more stroked the infant. Why was it that every time she held a newborn child in her arms, she immediately had to give it away? _“Agreed, see to it my friend. I will ask Malcolm to hand him over to the Jedi orphanage on Corelia.”_

Jedi knight Orgus Din didn’t seem convinced. _“What about the Green Jedi”?_ he asked. _“I am sure they will do us the favor and help in concealing his true identity. Their more liberal position to the truth might even be helpful. And once he is old enough, the boy will join the younglings and train to become a Jedi.”_

Orgus Din turned around to leave for the ship. _“One more thing, what is his name?”_ Satele thought for a moment and remembered an ancient fairy tale she once told Errin when she still was a youngling. A story her friend grew quite fond of. _“His name is Baliyan.”_

 

 *************************************************************************************************************************

 

**10 years later**

 

 _“Soresu!...Good…Ataru!...”_ The old Jedi looked at the Padawans in front of him and how they performed the different stances of the several lightsaber forms. One of them was particular skilled and managed the different styles without consideration or second thought. It didn’t surprise him anymore. Padawan Baliyan was way ahead of his class when it came to the art of lightsaber combat. Unfortunately he showed almost no interest in Jedi philosophy or history. More than once he got caught studying books about advanced fighting techniques instead of his supposed lecture. Yet, his talent for combat and strength in the force was unquestionable. He’d possibly become a great Jedi knight, maybe even a master, if he’d just learn some discipline and focus.

A servant entered the training room and hailed him over. _“Excuse my interruption master, but we received a message from Tython. Grandmaster Shan wishes to speak to you about one of your students.”_

 _“I will be right there…Padawans, continue your exercises. I will be right back.”_ Then he followed the servant to the communications room.

 

While most of the Padawans continued their forms over and over again, one of them did not. _“Baliyan, what are you doing? We are supposed to train the base stances.”_

 _“Indeed. But master Tahk didn’t mention for how long. I’d rather try something else…”_   The boy reached for his bag and took out a brown, old looking book. _“The art of war – advanced forms of lightsaber combat by battlemaster Antheus. How did you get this?”_ the other Padawan asked.

_“I found it in the library.”_

_“This doesn’t look like standard lecture to me Baliyan. Are you sure we are allowed to read this?”_

_“We are here to study the art of lightsaber combat and this book is about lightsaber combat. That sounds legit enough to me.”_

The other Padawans didn’t seem as convinced as Baliyan and most of them returned to their basic training. But the ancient texts and rich illustrations were most alluring to Baliyan, to him it appeared like a whole new world of forms, moves and combinations. _“Mou kei finishing move, best used when having the high ground. Supposed to dismember an opponent and end the fight immediately.”_ Baliyan read. The illustrations pictured the move as gross and brutal, yet effective.

The young Padawan started slowly but soon understood the purpose of every single motion, cutting off imaginary arms and legs in one single move. He repeated the maneuver over and over again. With every attempt he became more fluid and faster. Then a loud, almost yelling voice caught him off guard. Jedi master Tahk stood in the doorway and looked at him with a mixture of confusion and…fear? Why should a Jedi master be afraid?

 _“Padawan! Who showed you this?”_ Then he noticed the book next to Baliyan. _“Did you take this from the forbidden section of our library? Who do you think you are?”_ Master Tahk grabbed the book and ordered the Padawans to continue their forms. _“You come with me Padawan Baliyan. Let’s see what the librarian and master Tsun have to say about this.”_

 

As it turned out, neither the librarian nor the master of this enclave were particularly happy about a Padawan looking into forbidden knowledge or fighting techniques condemned immoral by the order.

 

*************************************************************************************************************************************

 

**10 years later**

 

Grandmaster Satele Shan was getting more and more tired of the council meetings and endless rants from Jedi master Kaedan. Sometimes she thought that the master simply liked to hear himself preach against the dark side. While not being wrong, there was no need to warn his fellow masters over and over again about the seducing power of the dark side. This was especially tiring since she had other things on her mind. 20 years since Ossus and now Errin’s son was on his way to Tython to become a Jedi knight.

All those years she kept a close eye on the boy, following every step of his training. And what she saw both alerted and encouraged her. While Baliyan certainly had the talent for combat of his father, the infamous Jedi killer and Sith general until Errin managed to turn him to the light, he often lacked the patience and discipline of his mother. This got him into more trouble than necessary. It was even rumored that he once had an affair with Jedi mentor Arya Zenduli. Though this was never proven, Baliyan definitively turned out to be a charmer. Even Satele had to admit that his charm was quite alluring.

 

A very handsome young man, brave, charming, smart and incredibly skilled in lightsaber combat, paired with a certain rogue ness, what could possibly go wrong? She chuckled at herself. Tython would be his proving ground. While Baliyan was already unmatched by his masters when it came to dueling, he still lacked the discipline to use his skills wisely. He’d need a fitting master, one who could discipline his temperament and teach him what no one achieved so far: Lessons of life as a Jedi. She briefly considered taking this task on herself, but rebuilding the order on Tython took most of her time. Master Kaedan? This would end in a mess. Master Kiwiiks was already busy with her apprentice Kira, another very talented yet undisciplined Padawan. This left basically only master Syo Bakarn or Orgus Din since the others were either already on missions or would soon be off planet.

 _“Grandmaster, are you alright?”_ master Orgus Din interrupted her thoughts. _“I am fine old friend, thanks. My apologies, I lost myself in my thoughts. What were we discussing again?”_

 _“The scary growing darkness master Kaedan is sensing.”_ Kira burst out, earning a deep sigh from master Kiwiiks. But before Kaedan could respond the Holocom beeped with an emergency message. _“This is an emergency alert, flesh raiders are attacking the training ground. We need immediate reinforcements!”_

_“Orgus, gather all the knights you can get except the temple guards and assist the defenders at the training ground. Find a peaceful solution if you can, the safety of our Padawans comes first. Master Kiwiks, prepare a second line of defense at the valley entrance in case we have to retreat. Master Syo, head to the training ground and take care of the newcomers. Master Kaedan, continue your investigation. This council meeting is closed, may the force be with you.”_

 


End file.
